Leah Gunn Barrett
There’s been a chorus of criticism of the Scottish government over its recent budget from unionist politicians and media. But why should anyone be surprised over Scotland’s dismal state? The reason is our status as a de facto English colony.
As a colony, we don’t own our own resources so we can’t provide heat and power for the costs of production which is what nationalized energy companies do. Instead, our resources are owned by private corporations that cream off profits for shareholders.
We can’t create our own key industries for transport or control our ports because they are owned by foreign governments and hedge funds. We can’t export our surplus energy for normal commercial prices or control our national grid because both are in the hands of Westminster.
We lack a central bank to create needed investment and must rely on a foreign bank that doesn’t prioritise Scotland’s interests. We receive back less than half our tax revenues from England yet are expected to be grateful for our “colonial pittance”.
We can’t hold public votes on national decisions that affect every Scot because we’re outnumbered 10 to 1 in Westminster and Holyrood, a creature of Westminster, has limited powers that can be curtailed and withdrawn any time London wishes.
We don’t have Scottish-owned media, but one controlled by international conglomerates and the BBC that bombards us daily with propaganda.
We can’t devise our own foreign policy to enable international diplomacy and trade, nor can we decide whether we want weapons of mass destruction on our soil.
And we can’t end endemic poverty and guarantee everyone a dignified living wage, paid for from the profits of our nationalized energy resources, while we are trapped in the failing UK.
The sovereign Scottish People can and must end this union.
Talking-up Scotland 
Well said!
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This message should be on the sides of a blue bus that tours the nation. WAKE Up Scotland.
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Rishi Sunak asks please explain why Scotland has different tax rates to England
We ask Rishi Sunak this , England takes all Scotlands money and only gives us back 60% of it , please detail what you spend the other 49% on once you give us an answer to this question that we have been asking for decades we will answer your question.
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40% not 49% 🙂 I should always put my specs on
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We also have no choice about whether we go to war and with whom. The only likely Scottish invasion of Iraq would have been a couple of Tartan Army minibuses for a World Cup qualifier.
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Anent ‘colonial status’: we have been conditioned to accepting we are a colony over the centuries since 1707, and, following the 1745 rebellion this was drummed into us increasingly powerfully both by the repressions by the Hanoverian armies, by police forces, by troops, by churches, by schools, by the media and by clearance and transportation.
Looking at the crest heading the post, I was immediately reminded of the song we sang regularly at primary school, ‘The Lion and the Unicorn’. I do not remember being told explicitly that ‘The Lion’ was England and ‘The Unicorn’ was Scotland.
You might remember the opening lines:
“The Lion and The Unicorn were fighting for the crown,
The Lion BEAT (my emphasis) the Unicorn up and down the town ….”
And, the message – know your place, Jockos!
There is also a message being sent about the suppression of ‘England’ as a concept and its replacement with Britannia. The England of many regional identities, dialects and customs has been subsumed into a British identity, which is actually contemptuous of ‘provincials’. Think of all these TV and radio programmes in which the half-wit speaks with an English ‘regional accent’. England does not have a parliament. More than 70 years ago JB Priestly wrote, ‘we are the plain people of England and we have not spoken yet’ And they still have not other than the media indicating the ‘plain people’ are racist xenophobes.
Arise, ye English from your slumbers … and stop voting Tory!
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I’ve never noticed that the unicorn is in chains.
That explains their attitude.
They think they own us.
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Scotland raises £87Billion in tax revenues. Up from £76Billion. Scotland spends £54Billion. More pro rata than raised in the rest of the UK. (£644Billion}
The UK raises £731Billion (down from £817). Westminster is spending £1090Billion. The rest of the UK borrows £100 more. Pro rata £10Billion. 2019/2020. 2020/21. UK Gov whole accounts. June 2022.
Scotland has to pay for waste projects and Westminster mismanagement. HS2, Hickley Point, Trident, redundant weaponry, illegal wars etc. £13Billion is spent a year by Westmibster decommissioning nuclear energy. For 10 years £130Billion. More in the future. Yet Westminster wants to build more. Years late and over budget.
The outcome is the claim Scotland spends £106Billion and is in debt. £30Billion, a third, is spent by Westminster on wasteful projects. Not in Scotland but the rest of the UK giving Scotland accured debt. No taxation without representation. No other democracy has its finances treated in this way.
Westminster spent £270Billion over two years on funding Covid. Much of it wasted in fraudulent, non regulated contracts. Scotland did not receive £27Billion pro rata.
Scotland is 25% in surplus in fuel and energy, and nearer the sources. The energy companies wanted to charge Scotland less. For parity. Westminster would not agree.
Brexit is a catastrophe. Losing £100Billion. Scotland £10Billion. Lost CAP payments, loans and grants, shared Defence costs. The EU contribution was £4Billion getting £Billions back. The nearest, biggest markets and preferential agreements with other major countries.
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